DEVELOPING: Three people were killed after a man went on a shooting spree in downtown Fresno, California on Tuesday while shouting "God is great" in Arabic before he was tackled and taken into custody, police said.

Fresno Police Chief Jerry Dyer said officers took Kori Ali Muhammad, 39, into custody in connection to the shootings. Dyer said Muhammad went by the nickname "Black Jesus" and shouted "Allahu Akbar" as police tackled him to the ground.

Dyer said at a news conference Muhammad told police that he hates white people, and has made posts against white people and the government on his Facebook page. All of the victims of the shooting rampage on Tuesday were white men, according to police.

The shooting spree began around 10:45 a.m. local time, when one person was shot in a PG&E utility truck, a second person was shot on Fulton Street and a third person was shot in the parking lot of Catholic Charities, FOX 26 News reported.

All three shooting locations were close to each other in the downtown area. Around 16 shots were fired during the shooting spree, police said.

“What we know is that this was a random act of violence,” Dyer said. “There is every reason to believe he acted alone.”Related stories...

Muhammad was already wanted in connection to the killing of an unarmed security guard at a Motel 6 last week, police said.

"Our thoughts are with all involved in the incident that occurred in Fresno today," PG&E said in a statement. "Public and employee safety is always our top priority. We are still gathering information on what happened, and will work to support first responders and law enforcement in their efforts."